All Apple All Day

Well. That wasn't very much fun.

It's that time of year again! If you're like me, you're counting the days until the next Apple Keynote. And most likely, you're avoiding any Apple purchases until 3/21.

Wow, time flies! Sorry for the delay between posts. I'll have a more Apple-Centric post up ASAP, but in the interest of letting people know that AAAD still exists, here's a quick rundown of our current projects:

Rumor has it that the iPhone 5se will go on sale on March 18 . I suppose it's good that Apple is bringing a 4" phone into the current-gen form factor and specs. But MAN I hate that name. Here's why.

This post will be short. It has literally nothing to do with Apple, iOS, or HomeKit. Our garbage disposer CRACKED IN HALF over the weekend. So there's a new project!

Hey, AAAD! Sorry for the lack of updates this week - hopefully that massive Mac Mini post gave you enough reading to tide you over.  Great Apple Moment this AM - I was driving to work, and inadvertently held the Digital Crown down on my watch for a moment. 

As I mentioned in our last post, we're going to be adding a Mac Mini Server to our iOS home . Our Mac Mini is going to have to do some heavy lifting - distributing music and HD video to AppleTVs throughout the house. We may need to buy the latest and greatest. But I'm also a huge proponent of buying used, last-generation Apple equipment. So let's take a look at how the Mac Mini has changed over the years, in terms of form and function.

Our home server project has been on the "AAAD coming soon" list for a couple of years. Now, with Phase 1 of the basement project is coming to a close, our home server finally has a home. Finally, it makes sense to move forward.

Phase One of the basement renovation is largely complete. While the contractors finish up the drywall work, we've gotten a head start on some of our own projects.  First up - shelving in the storage room. 

We had our first opportunity to walk through our new (mostly) finished basement last night. Our initial impressions? Adding walls - and especially adding drywall - fundamentally changes your perception of a space.

We are quickly approaching the "end of the beginning" of our basement remodel. "Phase One" was the rough-in - plumbing, electrical, HVAC, drywall, and sprinkler systems. It's almost done, and it looks great. Which means it's time for us to start Phase Two: The DIY projects.

It's not often that a new Apple OS feature REALLY gets me excited, but this one qualifies. AppleTV is getting folders. YES.

Well, the rough-in of the basement, in any case. We plan on doing much of the finish work ourselves. But at this point, we've passed our electrical and plumbing inspections, and the insulation and drywall is being installed. It should look like a usable, mostly finished space in no time.

Well. That was easy.

Today saw the release of tvOS 9.1 and watchOS 2.1 - that's usually boring news, but today is a bit different, as it means a big leap forward for convergence across iOS devices.